Defense attorneys and state prosecutors said today they are talking a possible plea bargain for Terry Lisotta, the former chief executive officer of the state-run property insurance company, who was indicted in late 2008 on 14 counts of theft by fraud from the agency.

File photoTerry Lisotta

Lisotta, the former head of the Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corp., and his attorney David Courcelle of Metairie as well as Assistant Attorneys General David Caldwell and Harrel "Butch" Wilson are due in court next Thursday to meet with 19th Judicial District Court Judge Richard Anderson to review the status of the case.

If no agreement is reached, a trial is expected to begin March 22.

Lisotta is accused of misusing about $30,000 in expenses from Citizens and two related insurance organizations -- the Louisiana Automobile Insurance Plan, the state's high-risk auto insurance pool; and the Property Insurance Association of Louisiana, the umbrella organization that ran the other two insurance groups until last year.

"We have been talking with the attorney general's office about a plea arrangement," Courcelle said. He declined to say what kind of deal may be in the works.

Caldwell, who heads the special prosecutions division in the office run by his father, Attorney General Buddy Caldwell, said that he has "had some discussions with his (Lisotta's) attorney about a plea, but they need to let us know" soon if they want to take a possible plea deal and not go to trial on all 14 counts.

Caldwell would not discuss the nature of the possible plea. If convicted on all 14 counts, Lisotta faces up to 140 years in jail, $42,000 in fines and restitution.

Caldwell said the status of the case will become clearer next week after both sides meet with Anderson. A plea deal could be announced at that time.

The charges against Lisotta stem from audits conducted by the legislative auditor from 2003 to 2006. The audits alleged that Lisotta incurred more than $285,000 in questionable expenses, including lavish meals and trips, airline tickets and retirement gifts not related to Citizens' operations.

The audits alleged that more than $106,500 of the expenses may never have been incurred or were not for business purposes.

Some of the charges claim Lisotta paid $5,000 more than he should have for airline tickets for a business trip to Europe with former Citizens Chief Financial Officer Caryl Mathes; more than $1,100 for beer, meat and other party items for a prom party for his daughter in 2004; and $4,100 for hotel rooms for himself and his daughters near or along parade routes for a four-day period during the 2005 carnival season.